


Just What the Doctor Ordered

by MortalAmaranthine



Category: Fall Out Boy, Panic! at the Disco
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, pharmacy AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-28
Updated: 2014-07-28
Packaged: 2018-02-10 18:53:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2036223
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MortalAmaranthine/pseuds/MortalAmaranthine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Patrick is a pharmacy technician still trying to learn the ropes at a new pharmacy. A customer by the name of Pete Wentz won't leave him alone.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Just What the Doctor Ordered

**Author's Note:**

> Please don't assume anything related to medicine in this fic is accurate. I interned at a pharmacy two or three times a week for a few weeks in high school. In college, I changed my major from pre-pharm to pre-nursing. There is a reason for that.

Just What The Doctor Ordered  
MortalAmaranthine

If the light didn’t turn green right fucking now, Patrick was going to be late.

Finally, finally, the light turned and Patrick was able to swivel left towards the convenience store where he worked. As he pulled into the parking lot, he could already see Joe’s beat up sedan and Andy’s hybrid in the back parking lot, as well as a few other cars out front. Patrick quickly parked and rushed into the back of the store, smoothing down his scrubs to make sure he looked presentable. The pharmacy was going to be opening in 7 minutes on the dot. He waved to their regular cashier, Joe, who was busy stocking sodas into the coolers. “Andy’s not happy!” Joe called after him, and Patrick winced. He knew he was in trouble now.

Quietly, Patrick slipped into the back room and stored his wallet, cell phone, and iPod in his locker. He hadn’t seen Andy yet, maybe he still had time to-

The door opened, and Patrick spun around to see his manager in the doorway, arms crossed. “Patrick, you were supposed to be here 10 minutes ago.” Andy said crossly.

Patrick ducked his head and fiddled with his name tag. “I’m really sorry Andy, the lights were against me this morning.” He said. He knew it was no excuse, and Andy expected better from him. He did genuinely feel bad- as far as managers went, Andy was pretty great. He let Patrick take breaks for lunch and didn’t mind that Patrick had the tinniest bladder in the history of existence as well as the constant need to stay hydrated, which had driven his old boss crazy.

Andy sighed and tapped his foot. “Leave the house earlier next time, okay? We’ve got customers waiting.” He said, and Patrick knew he was getting off easy. He had been here 3 weeks, and was still learning the ropes. He had earned his Pharmacy Technician License only 2 months earlier. He still found himself miscounting medications sometimes, which made Andy sigh in a way that made Patrick overeager to do twice as good from that point on.

Getting everything set up in the pharmacy and everyone logged onto the computers was a bit of a madhouse. There wasn’t much space between the counter and the shelves, so Patrick often found himself squeezing around Brendon and Ryan, the other techs that Patrick often shared a shift with, as well as Spencer, the tech manager. Andy, being the head pharmacist, often worked the consultation window, which was out of the way. The store manager, Jon, was well known to all of them. He often dropped in on the pharmacy at random times throughout the day to make sure that everything was running smoothly.

A glance at the printer told Patrick it was going to be a busy morning. Already there was a stack of about a dozen prescriptions printed off and ready to be filled. Suppressing a sigh, Patrick took out the stack of paper and tried to sort them.

Brendon popped up behind him, “I’ll take care of any left over from last night.” He offered, and Patrick gratefully handed over a couple papers. “If you get any that don’t need to be picked up until tomorrow, fill them and set them at the far end of the counter.” Patrick nodded and set to work. Filling prescriptions could be a bit mind-numbing, which Patrick had to be careful to avoid. When it came to counting controlled substances, he had to get the number right, no matter if the prescription called for 3 pills or 300. Yes, Patrick had once had to double-count a 300-pill prescription. Sometimes, being a pharmacy technician is just a blast.

However, the regular routine soon had Patrick focused. He’d get the prescription from his pile, and check to see where it was located: on the fast rack, which was a set of shelves above the counter where the most common medications were located, on the shelves, alphabetical, one section for generics and another section for name brands, or along the back wall where liquids and pre-packaged units were kept. After that, he’d count or measure out the medication (if it wasn’t pre-packaged), and double-count if it was a controlled substance. After that, he scanned the prescription, then the package, labeled the bottle, and put it all in a little tray on a conveyer belt towards Andy so he could check it. It was very repetitive, but kept him busy.

Brendon and Ryan were twice as fast as Patrick at this process, because they knew where all the medications were and counted like speed demons. Patrick still didn’t know how they never failed to get the right count- maybe it was just practice. Anyway, the two often spent the time they saved filling prescriptions quickly to sneak around the fridge (for medications that had to be kept chilled) and flirt like no tomorrow. It would have been cute if it wasn’t so nauseating.

About three hours later, Patrick was enjoying a quick break. He rested his hip against the counter and sipped his water bottle. Usually, from noon to two was slow because that’s when most everyone was on their lunch break. Spencer had stepped out to help some old lady find a certain brand of toothpaste, and Brendon and Ryan were by the fridge giggling about something.

A customer stepped up to the counter, and Andy glanced over. He was currently working the window on the drive-through, so he gestured to Patrick and then to the customer. Patrick caught his meaning and walked over.

“Hi! How can I help you today?” Patrick asked with a smile. He didn’t work the front counter often, preferring to stay in the back and fill prescriptions. Brendon and Ryan were much more outgoing than he was.

The guy was around the same age as Patrick, with dark hair that hung in his face and hazel eyes rimmed with a thin smudge of eyeliner. He was wearing a ratty sweatshirt for the soccer team of a high school just outside of Chicago, though he was obviously too old to be a high school student. His jeans had tears in the knees, and he looked rather nervous. Patrick kind of wanted to ask him for his number.

He held out two pieces of paper. “Hi, I, uh, just moved to the area and need two prescriptions filled?” It sounded more like a question than a statement. Patrick smiled and took the two slips of paper from the guy. For a split second, their hands brushed, but Patrick quickly pulled his hand back and busied himself with looking at the prescriptions. ‘Not only is this guy a customer, but he’s also clearly out of my league’, Patrick thought. ‘No need to get my hopes up.’

Patrick turned towards the computer and asked, “Can I get your phone number please?” The guy rattled off his number, and Patrick searched Central to find his profile. His name came up as ‘Peter Wentz’. “Can I get the patient’s name, please?” Patrick asked. “Pete Wentz.” The guy replied, flashing Patrick a bright smile. Patrick tried to keep his cheeks from coloring. He refused to believe that this guy – Pete- could be flirting with him. To keep himself occupied, Patrick scanned the prescriptions, carefully avoiding eye contact with Pete. It took Patrick a moment to enter all the needed information, but he was good with the program. “Alright, I can have these ready for you in 15 minutes if you’re willing to wait.” Patrick said, finally looking up at Pete. Pete grinned mischievously and answered, “Oh yeah, I’m willing.” Patrick tried not to choke on his own spit. As he turned back towards the shelves to avoid any further embarrassment, he saw Pete sit down in one of the chairs in their little lobby, pull out a cell phone, and start texting furiously. ‘He didn’t mean anything by it. He’s probably texting his girlfriend.’ Patrick thought dejectedly.

‘Ambien and Eskalith.’ Patrick reminded himself as he scanned the shelves. He quickly pulled what he needed and counted out the pills, then double counted them just in case. (As a rule, Patrick usually found that four types of medications always needed to be double-counted: antipsychotics, which sound much worse than they actually are, antidepressants, pain meds, and sleep aides.) Andy had finished his consult and was standing by the computers, approving prescriptions, ready for the incoming tray on the conveyer belt.

Andy quickly double-checked Patrick’s work and turned to Pete. “Alright, you’re gonna take one Ambien tablet each night before bed, and one Eskalith tablet in the morning. Drink lots of water, ‘cause it can dehydrate you. Let your doctor know if you experience any new or worsening symptoms. Do you have any questions?” Andy rattled off. Wentz shook his head quickly and took the two bags from Andy.

“Thank you.” Wentz said, and for a moment his eyes locked with Patrick’s and he flashed another eye-crinkling smile. Then, the moment was over and he was turning down the vitamin aisle and out of sight. After a moment, Patrick turned back to the counter as the printer started chugging out new prescriptions. Back to work.

Spencer stepped back into the pharmacy and nearly collided with Brendon and Ryan, who had just emerged from their little hiding spot. Spencer rolled his eyes and the lack of space between the two and pointed to where Patrick was standing. “Less flirting, more working.” He commanded, and both boys turned red.

“We’re not flirting!” Brendon said, annoyed. Spencer just shook his head and turned to help a customer at the window. Ryan turned and gave Patrick a ‘what the hell?’ look, and Patrick smiled and shrugged. He didn’t really want to be involved in any workplace romance drama.

Soon, Patrick once again had a stack of prescriptions a mile high to fill, and he fell back into this usual routine.

-just-what-the-doctor-ordered-

“Gaaaaaaaabe!” Pete called as he slammed the door to Gabe’s apartment shut. “You didn’t tell me the guy at the pharmacy was going to be the most adorable human I’ve ever seen!”

After a moment, Gabe sat up on the couch and muted the TV. He was watching Project Runway. Pete didn’t ask. “Huh?” Gabe grunted, eloquent as ever. Pete grinned and set his two paper bags on the kitchen table as he hurried into the living room.

Pete collapsed down on the couch, nearly sitting on Gabe’s legs. Gabe cursed and gave Pete a half-hearted kick in the thigh. After a moment of shifting and pushing, the two settled and Pete looked at Gabe with wide eyes. 

“He was adorable, Gabe, I swear, he had, like, red-blond hair and when he turned around he actually had a little bald spot, and he has sideburns down to his chin, like, overcompensating much? And he has the prettiest smile I’ve ever seen, and he was really nice, and-“

Gabe had to forcibly put his hand over Pete’s mouth to get him to stop talking. “Okay Pete-kun, I get it, Sempai is super cute.” He said, and removed his hand. Pete laughed and pushed Gabe’s arm away.

Eyebrow raised, Gabe asked, “But…seriously? He’s got a bald spot and sideburns? How old is this guy? I never pegged you as the type to go for the dudes going through their mid-life crisis.”  
In retaliation, Pete reached over and lightly tugged Gabe’s hair. “He’s not old! He looked a few years younger than me, actually.”

“So, jailbait then- ow! Pete!” Gabe cried when Pete tugged his hair harder. “You don’t even know this kid, he could be a psycho!”

Pete pouted and cross his arms. “He’s not a psycho. And even if he was, that would just make him more perfect for me.” He said. Gabe rolled his eyes. There was no reasoning with Pete.

Gabe picked up the remote and unmuted Project Runway. “Alright, so what’s his name?” He asked, reaching for the bag of chips he had left on the small coffee table.

There was a long moment of silence.

“You didn’t even look at his name-tag, did you?” Gave asked solemnly, and Pete opened his mouth to reply. Finding no adequate response, he closed it. Gabe sighed. “You’re completely hopeless.” He mourned. Pete ignored him, instead reaching over and stealing the bag of chips. That ought to show him.

-just-what-the-doctor-ordered-

The next day at work, Patrick was determined to get Pete off his mind. ‘A guy like Pete couldn’t possibly be interested in a guy like me.’, Patrick thought glumly. He looked over at Ryan who was at the filling station next to him. No one could argue that Ryan was gorgeous- thin, tall, outgoing, everything Patrick wasn’t. Brendon slipped past to grab something from the Unit of Use section, his hand trailing Ryan’s waist as he went by. Ryan turned and smiled at Brendon, the two obviously communicating much more with their eyes. Patrick looked away quickly, trying to ignore his flair of jealousy. Guys like Pete only went for guys like Ryan and Brendon anyway.

In the midst of his usual routine, Patrick almost didn’t realize there was someone at the counter until he heard him them speak. “Hey!” The customer called, and Patrick glanced up to tell them that someone would be right with them in a minute. However, the automatic response died on his tongue when he saw who it was. It was Pete, dressed a lot nicer today in a crisp polo and jeans with no rips. Ryan was about to step up and attend to Pete, but Patrick, who was closer to the window, put his hand on Ryan’s arm to stop him. Ryan gave him a questioning look, knowing Patrick disliked working the window, but Patrick ignored it for now.

Smoothing the shirt of his navy blue scrub top, Patrick stepped up to the window and smiled politely. “Hello, how can I help you?” Pete was just as cute as ever, with his too-big smile that made his eyes crinkle at the corners.

“Hey, uh…” Pete glanced at his nametag. “Patrick, I was wondering if you could help me pick out some, uh, vitamins.” Patrick couldn’t help but notice the way Pete fumbled his words, almost as if he were nervous.

The vitamins were kept in an aisle outside the pharmacy, so Patrick quickly stepped out and closed the pharmacy door behind him. “What kind of vitamins were you looking for?” Patrick asked, leading Pete down the aisle. It didn’t escape his notice how Pete stood slightly closer to him than was strictly necessary.

Pete didn’t answer for a moment, lost in thought. He was quite obviously staring at Patrick’s lips. “Oh! I, uh…a multivitamin, I guess?”

Patrick was blushing furiously, something he knew wouldn’t go unnoticed. His pale skin was a curse sometimes. He quickly turned away and searched along the shelves for the multivitamins section. “I recommend a one a day multivitamin. I don’t think that would interact with your other medications, but if you notice any worsening symptoms, you should tell your doctor right away.” Patrick finally found the bottle he was looking for, and snagged it off the shelves. “Here you go, sir.” Patrick mumbled, holding the bottle out for Pete to take.

Pete glanced from Patrick’s red face, to the bottle and back again. “Thank you,” Pete said, accepting the bottle from Patrick. “And please, call me Pete.”

Patrick nodded, unable to speak. He was pretty sure Pete could hear how fast his heart was pounding. He could see, past Pete shoulder, Ryan and Brendon in the pharmacy with their heads together, whispering furiously and continuously glancing over at the two of them. Patrick inwardly groaned. Now he was going to be getting grilled by his coworkers about this hot guy who probably just had personal space issues.

“Joe can ring that up for you at the front.” Patrick said quickly, and fled back into the pharmacy. He was pretty sure if he was around Pete for another second, he was going to do something remarkably humiliating, like asking if he wanted to get a cup of coffee.

Back inside the safety of the pharmacy, out of view of the customer window, Patrick leaned against the counter and sipped his water bottle. ‘Only 4 more hours in my shift, then I can go home and forget all about this.’ Patrick thought to himself. He turned back towards his stack of prescriptions, ready to dive back into his routine, but Brendon and Ryan stopped him dead in his tracks.

“So…who was that guy?” Brendon whispered, as though they were discussing a terrible secret.

Ryan jumped in before Patrick could answer. “He was kinda hot.” He admitted, and Brendon shot him a glare. “I mean…his hair was too dark though. And he was kinda short.” Ryan interjected, and Brendon smiled again. Patrick wished they weren’t quite so obvious.

With a roll of his eyes, Patrick turned back towards the counter. “He’s just some customer. I don’t know.” Patrick muttered, busying himself with the stack of prescriptions.

Ryan gasped, overly exaggerated. “You like him!” He said a bit too loudly, and Andy glanced their way with one eyebrow raised. Brendon pushed them both towards the counter to make it look like they were working, and Andy returned to his consult. “You like him!” Ryan repeated at a lower volume, shuffling and reshuffling his stack of paper.

“Guys, what is this, high school?” Patrick huffed, pushing past them to find something on the shelves. When he returned, Brendon and Ryan and already filled a prescription each. “He was definitely checking you out though.” Brendon murmured under his breath as Spencer walked by. Patrick felt his face flush as he remembered the way Pete had stared at his lips. Could it have been more than a coincidence? Could Pete really have been checking him out?

Patrick shook his head. “Guys, there’s no way. Hot people only ever go for other hot people. I mean, look at you two!” at this, Brendon and Ryan began to scoff and deny anything, but Patrick continued. “I mean, that guy was gorgeous, and I’m…” unconsciously, Patrick passed a hand over his midsection. He had never been proud of the extra weight he had put on after his last, awful break-up, but he had never felt so acutely ashamed of it until now.

Ryan bumped his shoulder. “C’mon Patrick, don’t be so down on yourself! If he’s the kind of guy that wouldn’t date you because of your weight, then he’s not the kind of guy you want to be dating in the first place!”

Brendon jumped in. “All I know is, that guy was definitely hitting on you. He seemed a lot more interested in your lips than your waistline.” Patrick blushed even more. Had they really been that obvious? Even more so, how could Brendon and Ryan so clearly see Pete hitting on him, but be blind to each other’s obvious flirting?

Patrick shook his head. Only 4 more hours in his shift, and he was home free. “Waiter printing.” Andy called from his computer, and Patrick resumed the daily grind.

-just-what-the-doctor-ordered-

The front door had barely had time to slam shut before Pete was shouting, “I found out his name! It’s Patrick!” He leaned over the back of the couch and dug his hand into Gabe’s popcorn bowl. “His name’s Patrick Stumph, and he has the prettiest mouth I’ve ever seen.” He said through a mouthful of popcorn.

Gabe didn’t even glance up from the television (Say Yes to the Dress). ”Did you get his number?” He asked steadily. 

Pete froze. He turned his head and stared at Gabe for a good, solid minute. Then, he calmly picked up Gabe’s bowl of popcorn, and, while maintaining full eye contact, dumped it onto the living room floor. After a few more seconds of glaring to establish dominance, Pete retreated to his bedroom in silence (save for the window-rattling slam of his bedroom door).

Gabe couldn’t keep his smug smile hidden any longer. This just kept getting better and better.

-just-what-the-doctor-ordered-

The next afternoon at the pharmacy was insanely busy. Patrick, Ryan, Brendon, and Spencer were all busy behind the counter, taking phone calls, filling prescriptions, and helping customers. Patrick really, really had to pee, but he knew now was the worst time to ask for a break. Wasn’t he supposed to have another, like, 50 years before he could start expecting bladder problems? What the hell?!

Finally, there was enough of a lull that Patrick didn’t feel guilty for taking a quick bathroom break. Upon his return, he ran, quite literally, into Pete.

“Oh gosh, I’m so sorry, sir, I didn’t see y-” The apology he was sputtering quickly faded out when Patrick realized who he was currently dealing with.

Another eye-crinkling smile. “Hey, Patrick.” Pete said, not at all concerned with the fact that Patrick’s face was about two inches from his own. “Can I have your number? I wanna take you out for coffee sometime.”

Patrick, after taking a moment to process what Pete had just said, took a quick step back and stared hard at his feet. Was this some kind of joke? Was he on punk’d? Would camera men jump out from the pet food and the school supplies aisles and film the flaming blush currently taking up residence across his entire face?

“Here, I have a pen and paper, just rattle the numbers off.” Pete said helpfully, somehow pulling said items from seemingly nowhere.

Hesitantly, Patrick listed off his phone number. Pete transcribed it with a flourish. “Thanks, Patrick! I’ll call you soon, okay?” and, with a quick kiss on the cheek, Pete scurried out.

The whole thing had taken maybe about a minute, maybe a minute and a half. Patrick was left feeling dazed. He returned to the pharmacy not quite believing that the confrontation had actually transpired. It wasn’t until Andy called him over a few minutes later that Patrick was roughly pushed off cloud nine.

“Patrick, this prescription calls for Microzide, not Micronase.” Andy sighed, and Patrick felt about two feet tall.

“I’m really sorry Andy, I’ll fix it right away.” Patrick said, taking the bottle from Andy and hurrying to fill the prescription properly. He hated it when he messed stuff like this up. If Andy didn’t catch his mistakes, he could really hurt somebody. It gave Patrick a sick feeling in his stomach. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt anyone. Furthermore, Andy was a fantastic boss and went easy on Patrick. That didn’t stop Patrick from feeling guilty every time Andy was disappointed in him, though.

‘I’ve got to get Pete out of my head for the rest of the day.’ Patrick thought to himself. He had work to do. Important work. He had all the time in the world after work to worry about Pete asking for his number and taking him out to coffee and maybe inviting him back to his place…aw, shoot, was that the 103rd pill or the 104th? Now he had to start all over.

‘This is all Pete’s fault.’ Patrick thought darkly. A glance at the clock told him he had 3 more hours to go. It was going to be brutal.

-just-what-the-doctor-ordered-

Pete slammed into the apartment, marched over to the couch, and shoved the piece of paper with Patrick’s phone number on it in Gabe’s face. “See?! I got his number! What have you got to say to that, Saporta?”

Gabe didn’t even glance up from America’s Next Top Model. “So what do you know about him besides his name and number?”

Pete threw up his hands and stormed out of the apartment. Motherfucking Gabe Saporta.

-just-what-the-doctor-ordered-

When Patrick’s shift ended, and he went to his locker to retrieve his things, he was surprised to see he had a missed call. He glanced around, making sure the coast was clear before listening to the voicemail. He had a hunch who the missed call might be from, and it made his heart pound. He quickly settled back against the lockers and dialed his voicemail. “You have… one… missed call…at…3…46…PM…*beep* Hey, Patrick, this is Pete! I was, uh, wondering if you wanted to go get a coffee sometime! I know you don’t know me very well... I’ve been told I come on a bit strong, but, I think you’re really cute and I’d like to get to know you! So, I’ll be at the coffee shop on the corner of 8th and Lincoln at 6 if you wanna meet up. I’ll… hopefully see you later!” and the message ended.

Hands shaking, Patrick checked the time. Shit, it was already 6:00! As fast as he could, Patrick shoved his stuff into his pockets and sped out the door… right into Brendon.

“Hey! Where you going in such a hurry?” Brendon inquired.

Patrick smiled, unable to hold it back. “I have a date!” He said excitedly, and slipped past him without another word. Brendon watched him go, happy for him. Then, he quickly pulled out his phone. ‘Ryan has to know about this!’.

-just-what-the-doctor-ordered-

Ordering at coffee shops always made Pete anxious, but around 5:45 he ordered something with a lot of milk and sugar and sat down at a table for two. He drank his coffee quickly, glancing at the clock every few minutes or so. As 6 o’clock came and went, Pete finished his coffee and glanced at the clock more often, worryingly. At 6:15, Pete was convinced Patrick hated his guts and never wanted to see him again. At 6:30, Pete knew he was going to die alone and unloved. Dejected, he stood up, threw away his long empty coffee cup, and headed for the door.

However, he stopped when he saw Patrick come through, looking frazzled. His clothes were rumpled and he looked like he had half-heartedly tried to run a comb through his hair just before coming in. 

Patrick approached him, running a hand through his hair. “Pete, I’m so sorry, I got off work at 6:00 and I’m not allowed to have my phone, I had to rush home and change my clothes and drive all the way down here, I’m so sorry I’m late, I didn’t mean to-” Patrick abruptly stopped talking, because Pete’s lips were pressed against his. 

Shocked, Patrick didn’t respond, and Pete pulled away looking worried. “Was that too sudden? Sorry, you just looked really cute and I really wanted to kiss you.”

It took Patrick a few seconds, but he finally smiled, a light blush spreading quickly across his cheeks. “No, that’s- that’s fine.” He said. “You can, uh, kiss me anytime.” He said, shuffling his feet.

Pete grinned widely, his eyes crinkling at the corners. “I plan on it.” He promised.


End file.
